I always enjoy people’s build threads, so it’s about time I contributed.

I picked up my 2018 M2 6MT in August of 2019 with only 7300 miles on it. Plans for the car are to be my DD, replace the hole in my heart left from when I sold my Dakar Yellow E92 ZCP, and make some appearances (and hopefully some noise) in NASA time trials.

The power to weight (3390lbs with the gas light on, full interior, all stock everything) of the car classes it very comfortably in TT4 which means I don’t need to add much (if any) power or cut any weight at all, which is optimal for retaining DD drivability. But, it presents unique challenges as I’ll have to make decisions for track mods keeping in mind the fact that the car’s driven primarily on the street and to transport my toddler - so stuff like roll bar, rear seat closeout, super aggressive brakes and coilovers simply aren’t an option. Also to consider - potholes here have gotten REALLY bad. I have bent 4 wheels in the last 18 months on potholes, toasted a wheel bearing and popped a tire. This is a consideration for both wheels and suspension mods.

Snapped a quick pic the day I brought it home:

For TT4, I will be limited to 100UTG tires (so no HooHoos , unfortunately) so I’ll probably be running Toyo R888R or Maxxis RC1 (whatever’s faster) to take advantage of available contingencies. I’m also taking the BTM aero mod, though I should have enough available points to add aero down the line. The series rules also specify that tires can not have a measured section with of more than 282mm at 30mm from the tread - this presents another challenge considering track wheels as I’ll likely be limited to a 9.5” wheel in the rear with a maximum 275mm tire. So, do I run a 255/275? 265 Square? I’ll have to figure that out. I’m planning a progression of brakes, again bearing in mind available money from contingencies (Hawk, Raybestos,etc).

First Track weekend: SCCA Track night in America/Nasa HPDE4

For my first track action, I wanted to run completely stock for several reasons. Although there is a ton of good knowledge on the forums regarding what tires, pads, etc to run; as well as what I’ve discovered from my own experience, I wanted to get a feel for the car so that I could better understand exactly how and to what extent each modification was changing the driving characteristics on track. So, against the better judgement of the forums at large, I ran my first two track days with stock tires, stock pads, a fresh oil change from BMW and ATF type 200 brake fluid (I’m not totally crazy, guys). Shoutout to TMS whose brake bleeder bottle made flushing fluid myself an absolute breeze.

I was fortunate enough to have TNIA and NASA fall on the same weekend, so I could get some good laps in before I had my check ride to advance to NASA TT. I started out running in the 2:15s, and finished the day with a 2:05.9 at our local track (where most of my track time will be spent). Checking local region TT4 times: the majority of competitors run 1:56-1:59. This is fantastic. What wasn’t so fantastic is the rear pads leaving some pretty significant deposits on the rear rotors…

We had been dodging forecasts for pretty poor weather, and I was hoping that it would continue to hold off so that I could keep building on my progress from TNIA. The weather did not cooperate, and my first session with NASA was on a soaking wet track. The tires were not happy with this at all, threatening to step out anywhere I tried to push. I resigned to trying to perfect the racing line at about 3/10-4/10, but unlike many competitors did not leave the track or complete partial sections going the wrong way.

My second session was my TT check ride - this is where the HPDE4 group leader (and in this case a TT competitor himself) rides along to make sure you’re competent to step up into a competition group. I’ve always been very comfortable in traffic, very conscious of the position of other cars on track, and (perhaps to a fault), very generous with point by’s to ensure I’m not ruining hot laps for much faster cars. I also had the opportunity to overtake a Dinan stage 1 M2 on PS4s…

The check ride went well, and with some guidance from the group leader (And an almost completely dry track) I was able to drop another second off my best time.

The next session was a bummer, as on the first hot lap another driver in a stellar E36 M3 put a wheel off, lost control, and went straight into a wall. We were black flagged for over half the session waiting for the track to clear. Once we got back out and warmed back up, I ran my best lap of the weekend - a 2:04.4 The next lap I was on a flyer, green in the first two sectors, when they threw the checker and ended the session - which meant straight into the pits. GRR! Overall though, it was a great track weekend, with the car exceeding my expectations in every way. It was absolutely sensational on track, and I can’t wait to get back out there.

Overall impressions: I found the limits of the PSS pretty quickly, even with optimal inflation. The stock brakes were VERY good, though I will note that our local track does not have any heavy braking zones, and I was also taking very good care of them. An important note (especially WRT lap times) is that I was lifting on the straight instead of shifting to 6th and staying in it, specifically to prevent cooking the brakes before T1. There’s a ton of time to be gained with a tire and brake upgrade only. I also noticed a ton of body roll - will have to figure out if it’s worth an upgrade there to tame it without compromising daily drivability.

First track action - paper tags and all:

Dyno Day

I got my BMC filter put in, filled up with a tank of 93 and headed to Modified by KC for a dyno day being put on by my old car club. Ended up be a muggy but mild day, around 82-84 degrees. Based on dyno’s I’ve seen on the forums and the one submitted for NASA classing, I was expecting 320-340 whp. My car made....not that.

January 2020 Update
First off - I did a "fail", as the kids say. I didn't do enough research on the BMC filter, which promptly, happily, and continuously threw CELs. No issues once I went back to the OEM filter.

October 2019 - NASA Central Regional Championship

Since I only got signed off for TT before the last event of the year, I wasn't eligible (And couldn't score enough points in one day anyway) to qualify for the regional championships, but there were still points and contingencies and hardware for the weekend to compete for.

On stock tires and very badly faded stock brakes, I improved my times quite a bit but still wasn't quite up with the pack. When I started to send it harder, either the tires or the brakes (and frequently both) let me know that they were past their limit. Still, I'm happy with the improvement (And any weekend where you bring the car home in one piece is chalked up as win in my book).
One thing I noticed besides the brakes and tires was that the gearbox started to get....slushy? The shifts weren't nearly as smooth once the transmission started to warm up. Not sure yet if that's a "me" problem or if there's something I can do to mitigate that.

I took home an unimpressive 3rd (out of 3 - we had 2 other guys in the class who didn't register a time in the sessions that counted) for the day - but I'll take the trophy and the Hawk Bucks!

It's already been a pretty long offseason, and I'll likely be waiting even longer (until May!) to get back in the saddle. My goal in 2020 is simple - to challenge for the Central Region TT4 championship. I'd also like to drive at least one "Bucket List" track this year - and that might go down at Global Time Attack Road Atlanta.

February 2020 Update
After doing some more research and talking with a shop that loves to build M racecars, I decided to go ahead and upgrade to Swift springs, and postpone any coilover upgrade to when the car is not doing dual-duty. After driving around on the springs for a couple weeks, I think that's a great idea. They ride a lot firmer than stock - which I absolutely love - but it does get to be a bit much on the road, and I certainly wouldn't want any more aggressive suspension setup.

Love how it looks.

Rona Update

Well, this spring has sucked. Not going to dwell much on that. It looks like we're going to be able to have our May 30th NASA event, so I'll finally be getting the car out on the track with all the upgrades from over the winter.

Test fitting the TA5Rs wrapped with Toyo R888R:

I got some Lamin-X for the headlights and started getting the classing and contingency decals laid out:

Awesome post! Surprised it makes it comfortably into TT4 - how much HP are you expecting to see on the dyno & what modifier are you expecting to use?

Check out the CAE shifter if you haven't already - it's awesome on the track - and on the street. That + CDV removal is a heck of a combo.

And good luck in time trials!

Huh, I hadnít seen that shifter before - thanks!

Thereís already a guy who ran a DCT M2 in TT4 last year. He made 333 avg HP at 3710 comp weight. Since I donít have to take points for the shiftable automatic, that gives me more room. Iíll know for sure on the dyno soon but hereís how the classing breaks down:

Thereís already a guy who ran a DCT M2 in TT4 last year. He made 333 avg HP at 3710 comp weight. Since I donít have to take points for the shiftable automatic, that gives me more room. Iíll know for sure on the dyno soon but hereís how the classing breaks down:

The CAE is a bit on the pricey side - but to me its worth it. The way it guides the shifts is awesome - more insurance against the $ shift. A very precise, short throw. I hadn't seen it before either when I bought my M2 a few months ago. Went with it after a couple of guys here recommended it - made the car so much more enjoyable to drive both street & track.

That's awesome it slots into TT4 with that setup. Forgot the weight was with driver - that was what tripped me up when I was reading it. Ought to be a lot of fun like that in that class.

There’s already a guy who ran a DCT M2 in TT4 last year. He made 333 avg HP at 3710 comp weight. Since I don’t have to take points for the shiftable automatic, that gives me more room. I’ll know for sure on the dyno soon but here’s how the classing breaks down:

The CAE is a bit on the pricey side - but to me its worth it. The way it guides the shifts is awesome - more insurance against the $ shift. A very precise, short throw. I hadn't seen it before either when I bought my M2 a few months ago. Went with it after a couple of guys here recommended it - made the car so much more enjoyable to drive both street & track.

That's awesome it slots into TT4 with that setup. Forgot the weight was with driver - that was what tripped me up when I was reading it. Ought to be a lot of fun like that in that class.

Did you track your E92 M3? If so how does the M2 compare for you?

Quote:

Originally Posted by OG Shark

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeastieBombRacing

Huh, I hadn't seen that shifter before - thanks!

There's already a guy who ran a DCT M2 in TT4 last year. He made 333 avg HP at 3710 comp weight. Since I don't have to take points for the shiftable automatic, that gives me more room. I'll know for sure on the dyno soon but here's how the classing breaks down:

The CAE is a bit on the pricey side - but to me its worth it. The way it guides the shifts is awesome - more insurance against the $ shift. A very precise, short throw. I hadn't seen it before either when I bought my M2 a few months ago. Went with it after a couple of guys here recommended it - made the car so much more enjoyable to drive both street & track.

That's awesome it slots into TT4 with that setup. Forgot the weight was with driver - that was what tripped me up when I was reading it. Ought to be a lot of fun like that in that class.

I should be at all of the NASA central region events this year, starting in March at NCM. GTA unfortunately isnít going to work hoping to hit SLB at COTA next year.

Re: data logging, havenít gotten that far yet.

I have a big excel spreadsheet managing the track budget, all the parts I need/want, and a tentative schedule. The big win here is I donít need to mess with anything that improves my power to weight ratio.